Day Trip To El Valle De Anton in Panama

El Valle de Anton or better known as ‘El Valle’ is a beautiful valley situated just outside of Panama City. El Valle means the Valley and is far more than just a valley sitting in the middle of the jungle. The valley is actually a crater of an extinct volcano that is now home to just over 7,000 people, hundreds of native birds and unique animals including sloths. I had the opportunity to visit Panana for an incredible intimate wedding at Dreams Playa Bonita which you can check out here. I wanted to be able to see more of the country and get off the resort while I was in Panama so I spent some time looking for some tours that I could do. Something that is really important to me when exploring a country is supporting local and having a unique experience. When I landed on a blog that shared their experience exploring Anton Valley with an incredible, indigenous guide I knew I had found the perfect adventure.

Valle de Anton is about a two and a half hour drive from Panama City, but make sure to take into consideration that your commute if being picked up near Panama City could be much longer. Why is that? Well over half of the population in Panama live or work in the city so the morning rush hour is something like you have never seen before. The drive for these commuters can take 3-4hours each way. So to help with that two of the westbound lanes on the highway are reversed so drivers can use these to go into the city. For those heading out of the city, which was the case for us heading to El Valle, you are left with only two lanes. Our incredible tour guide Jerry coordinated with our driver Johnathon to ensure that we would have extra time in the morning to allow for a few stops but our drive ended up being closer to three and a half hours as we had to go with the flow of traffic into the city around the east end of Panama City and then turn around to finally head towards El Valle.

Once we finally arrived in El Valle de Anton were we ever blown away. This beautiful little town sitting in the heart of an extinct crater was honestly so amazing. From the little street vendor shops selling the freshest fruit you will ever have, the coolest looking barber shop to the little homes that sit at the base of the jungle hills. We met up with Jerry, who has a strong resemblance to Tarzan, and the rest of our group that would be exploring with us on that day, we hopped in the back of a lifted pick up truck and began our adventure into the jungle of El Valle.

Riding in the back of a pickup truck with only bars to hold onto while riding up hills with grades steeper than 20% made for some heck of a time! The entire group was laughing and enjoying the fresh morning air while making sure no one got smacked in the face by a low hanging branch! Our first stop was to a waterfall called Pozo Azul. If you do not have a 4x4 car you will need to park your car at the parking lot at the top and walk the last 1km on the dirt road. Here we got the chance to cliff jump, swim in the crystal clear waters and follow the source of the first waterfall to discover an additional 5 waterfalls if you continued climbing up the rocks.

From there we stopped off for lunch at a local cafe where they made the most delicious home made pasta and then we were off to explore Tavida Waterfall. This 32- metre high waterfall is surrounded by the lush jungle and plummets into a pool perfect for cooling down on a hot day. After spending some time climbing to the base of the falls and swimming in the pool we began our journey back down into the valley. Although our day was not over! We hung out at Bohdi Hostel where most of the other people from our tour were staying and waited for the sun to begin to set.

Once the sun began to set we hopped back in the truck and headed up the bumpiest road yet and began to head up one of the mountains for a sunset hike. To summit the mountain the last kilometre had to be hiked up the windiest pass I had ever climbed. You could see the wind more often than not blew so hard through this pass that most of the trees were crooked from it. Once we finally reached the top to watch the sunset beyond the valley it was pure magic. The sunset in Panama was truly like nothing I had ever seen before. We sat there as the wind whipped around us and just took it all in. Jerry, our guide, did some yoga as the sun was setting while others wandered around and explored the summit. Once we watched the sunset we began our hike and drive back down to the valley. It truly was one of the most incredible days I have ever experienced. This day trip to El Valle de Anton is something I cannot recommend enough to anyone that is visiting Panama. I look forward to coming back one day and spending a few weeks in Anton Valley to explore everything it has to offer.

Road trip car view going to El Valle De Anton. Beautiful nature, steering wheels, posts, signage
Red welcome signage with a white truck passing by.
Road view going to El Valle De Anton showing the beautiful mountain ranges.
Beautiful road view going to El Valle De Anton. Rich in nature road.
Beautiful photo of a dog sitting at the street, taken in the car.
Cute black with white dog sitting on a sunny ground. Dog looking at the side.
A mixture of green and yellow bananas being sold along the road. near El Valle De Anton.
Pinas or pineapples being sold along the road.
Aesthetic minimalist barber shop spotted along the road. Store with Barberia print.
Aesthetic wall decoration quotes saying "Be happiness itself" with three pillows below.
Adventurous friends standing in an open back car enjoying the air breeze going to El Valle De Anton
Adventurous friends smiling at the camera. Woman wearing tank top with "Down Dawn" print, hat and headset. Other woman wearing black NY baseball cap, black sunglasses and green pullover with a print "adventurer"
Adventure ready lady looking at the side. Road trip to El Valle De Anton in Panama
Beautiful friends smiling, enjoy the cold breeze during road trip to El Valle De Anton
Beautiful landscape in El Valle De Anton. Rich in nature view.
Unique trees in El Valle De Anton. Beautiful nature on an adventure day.
Beautiful and calming sky view with healthy trees in El Valle De Anton
Road trip view going on the top of the hill. Adventure engagement day drip in El Valle. Gloomy weather in nature.
Adventurous man with tattoo taking a photo of the waterfalls using his DSLR camera.
Beautiful waterfalls in El Valle De Anton
Adventurous man diving in the waterfalls showing his feet.
Adventurous man diving in the waterfalls showing his feet.
Beautiful lady cliff diving in El Valle De Anton
Man cliff diving while the lady is taking a photo of him using a Nikon DSLR camera. Couple wearing black swimming outfits.
Beautiful long exposure soft shot of the waterfalls in El Valle De Anton
Beautiful friends all wearing black bikinis taking a selfie with the waterfalls on the background.
Beautiful waterfalls in El Valle De Anton with a lot of unique and big stones
Five adventurous friends walking in the rocky waterfalls in El Valle De Anton
Beautiful hiker taking a photo of the overlooking view of El Valle De Anton using a DSLR camera.
Beautiful hiker's back view wearing a red backpack taking a photo of the beautiful trees in front of her in El Valle De Anton,Panama
Beautiful top view from El Valle De Anton showing mountain ranges and road.
Rich and green nature shot showing mountain ranges at the back.
Back view of an adventurer wearing a hat and Hershel back up looking at the beautiful view in El Valle De Anton
Unique trees in El Valle De Anton. Beautiful nature on an adventure day.
A group of friends hiking on a trail to El Valle De Anton. Day trip adventure together in Panama.
Astonishing trees view in El Valle De Anton showing a beautiful and unique mountain at the back.
Cafeteria in the nature of El Valle De Anton. Simple cafeteria with bamboo woods.
Road trip view going to El Valle De Anton. Gloomy weather, curvy road.
Relaxing top view in El Valle De Anton. Overlooking and green mountains filled with trees. Photo in a gloomy weather.
Adventurous friends taking a selfie on a road trip. Friends wearing hats, no makeup look, wearing adventure ready outfits.
Adventurous groom smiling on a road trip wearing gray sando and black sunglasses.
Beautiful bride covering face with hat during road trip going to El Valle De Anton
Beautiful provincial view in El Valle De Anton, green and peaceful view free from pollution.
Curvy road going to El Valle De Anton in Panama. Adventure day trip.
Beautiful lady relaxing in a read stripped hammock while smiling at the camera.
Full view of the waterfalls in El Valle De Anton from a far. Green nature and waterfalls.
Whole view of the beautiful waterfalls in El Valle De Anton
Adventurous man taking a bath in the beautiful waterfalls of El Valle De Anton in Panama.
lady standing at the side of the waterfalls of El Valle De Anton looking at the top of it. Beautiful waterfalls in Panama.
Friends taking a bath in the beautiful waterfalls of El Valle De Anton. Adventure day trip. 3 friends taking a bath on the waterfalls.
Beautiful and clean view in El Valle De Anton. Nature filled view in Panama.
Road going to El Valle De Anton showing the top of El Valle De Anton. Beautiful, clean and relaxing view
Adventurous couple hiking in the trail of El Valle De Anton
Low angle shot of the nature in El Valle De Anton
Adventurous lady hiking on the top of El Valle De Anton during golden hour.
Breathtaking view on top of El Valle De Anton. Beautiful nature, high mountains.
Clean and beautiful landscape view in El Valle De Anton.
Beautiful nature view in El Valle De Anton during golden hour.
Beautiful and calming view in El Valle De Anton with a balanced rock formation.
Lady wearing green sweater taking a photo using a DSLR camera in El Valle De Anton
Breathtaking top view of the mountain of El Valle De Anton with a couple walking towards the front.
Woman sitting on top of El Valle De Anton during unset enjoying the overlooking view.
Fun jump shot of a man in El Valle De Anton during sunset.
Silhouette photo of a man doing a creative and fun pose behind the sunset in El Valle De Anton
Silhouette photo of a man doing a Yoga pose behind the sunset in El Valle De Anton
Beautiful lady walking towards the beautiful mountain edge of El Valle De Anton wearing hiking outfit.
Beautiful lady standing in front of the beautiful mountain edge of El Valle De Anton wearing hiking outfit.
Beautiful top view in El Valle De Anton showing the beautiful mountains with city view.
Beautiful landscape view in El Valle De Anton during a gloomy day.

If you would want to book a tour with Jerry here is how you can get in contact!

If you need a local guide for any kind of incredible tour I cannot recommend Jerry's company Travelling Souls enough! Here is how you can get in contact with him!
Instagram: @jerryfit @travelling_soulspa

If you are looking for an amazing driver or another tour guide - our driver Johnathon is the one to connect with! Here is his contact information:
Instagram: @panama.destinatioon.tm

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